European Imperialism in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

9780882298122

0882298127

This book presents an overview of Europe's imperialist career from the end of the Napoleonic wars in 1815 to the present; in other words, from the establishment of Britain's ascendency as the major power in the world and the head of Europe's largest empire to the era of decolonization and the eclipse of Western Europe in world affairs. Examined is the nature and extent of Europe's relations with the world overseas, the economic and political factors present in Europe during the era of industrialization that determined the direction of those relations, the effects of increased European penetration upon non-European societies in the nineteenth century, and the explosion of European imperialism in the last quarter of the century. The author discusses the effects of modern European colonization in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East; the changes that occurred in Europe's economic relationship with the rest of the world in the twentieth century; and the current process of decolonization. In the final chapter, the overall importance of Euorpean imperialism in the workd history is assessed.